Each edition grades its towns against each other only.
Population 6,945: a town in Pas-de-Calais, Hauts-de-France.
A tough set of grades. With a C− overall, Houdain is better than 15% of compared French towns. That places it #74 of 120 in Pas-de-Calais. The weak point is health (D−) — after allowing for care homes, deaths from 2016 to 2025 were 27% above expected, against 12% below for the median of compared French towns. It lags on jobs & income as well (D−): 0.5 jobs per working resident; 14.8% unemployment. Where it does best is cost of living: at the median price, a 70 m² home costs 4.4 times the median annual income per consumption unit in the intercommunality. Its remaining grades are unremarkable: C+ for schools and B for walkability.
Figures: prices, DVF · income per consumption unit (an income adjusted for household size), INSEE Filosofi · deaths, INSEE (by commune of residence, 2016–2025) · employment and commuting, INSEE census 2023 · brevet and bac results, Ministry of Education · amenities, INSEE BPE 2025.
Hazard risk isn’t graded in France yet: national flood maps cover only some areas. The overall grade uses the other six subjects.
The 2 things Houdain does most differently from other towns.
Each subject compares Houdain with other French towns of 2,500 or more, ordered by how far its rank is from the middle. American and UK towns are graded separately.
How TownRatings grades French towns →
The Culture ministry’s list holds 1 historic monument in Houdain; none is classé, France’s top protection.
Wikidata records 2 people born in Houdain before 1900, the earliest Philippe Gengembre, in 1764.
Data highlights are ordered by what stands out in Houdain.
Care access and life expectancy are shown for context, not graded.
From 2016 to 2025, 805 residents of Houdain died, against 633 expected from France’s death rates at each age: 27% more. At birth, a girl in Pas-de-Calais can expect 83.5 years and a boy 77.5 (2025); across France, 85.9 and 80.3. This Pas-de-Calais town has 6 family doctors.
Source: INSEE, deaths by commune of residence 2016–2025 and censuses; Eurostat, death rates by age (© European Union); INSEE, BPE 2025; DREES, APL 2024; INSEE, life expectancy by département 2025 · Licence Ouverte · The care-home adjustment is a TownRatings modeling step, not an official statistic.
Graded property crimes ran at 13.9 per 1,000 residents a year, and violence against people at 11.6 (2023–2025 average). For 2025, the figures show 179 offenses in Houdain. More of the graded crimes here were criminal damage than anything else (2025).
Not in the gradeTheft without violence, drug use and fraud are shown for information but left out of the Safety Grade, which counts violence plus burglaries, vehicle thefts, thefts from vehicles and criminal damage per resident.
Source: SSMSI (Interior Ministry), recorded crime by commune, 2023–2025 · Licence Ouverte · When armed robbery number five or fewer in a recent year, the figure is withheld, and the index uses the département’s average instead (0.6% of the index here). The count covers the offense categories the Safety Grade uses.
Rents are the ministry’s estimates of advertised rents, not rents actually paid.
154 sales of houses and apartments in Houdain, from July 2023 to June 2026, give the median of €1,439/m². A house rents for an estimated €8.61/m² a month. From July 2023 to June 2026, 154 homes were sold here.
| By type | Median per m² | Sales |
|---|---|---|
| Houses | €1,445/m² | 152 |
Source: DGFiP, DVF property sales (Etalab geolocated); Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025; INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
France has no History Grade yet: this card describes, it doesn’t grade.
Houdain has 1 historic monument on the Culture ministry’s list, none at the highest level (classé).
Ministère de la Culture, Mérimée (Licence Ouverte 2.0) · INSEE, census 2023, homes by build period
14.8% of the labour force were unemployed, above both Pas-de-Calais’ towns (13.3%) and compared French towns (10.1%). Walking, cycling and public transport carried 7.2% of commuters at the census.
Source: INSEE, census 2023 (commuting, employment, jobs at place of work); INSEE, Filosofi 2023 · Licence Ouverte
Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
The bac pass rate near Houdain is 88.7%, below both Pas-de-Calais’ towns (90.7%) and compared French towns (92.9%). Its collèges and lycées rank #89 of 123 in Pas-de-Calais on results.
| School | Level | Candidates | Passed, 2025 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Collège Jacques PrévertNearest collègeCollège | Collège | 118 | 84%+2 pts |
| Lycée polyvalent CarnotNearest lycéeGeneral lycée | General lycée | 354 | 94%±0 pts |
| Collège Simone SignoretBest against expectations: 9 points above the expected rateCollège | Collège | 93 | 82%+9 pts |
Ministry of Education (DEPP) · brevet and bac 2025, value added (IVAC, IVAL) · Licence Ouverte
Aged 15 to 24: 12% of residents. Residents of Houdain have a median age of 43.3. Children under 15 make up 17%, lower than Pas-de-Calais’ towns (18%) and near compared French towns (17%).
52% women, 48% men
About 93 men for every 100 women. Median share of women: Pas-de-Calais 52.0%, France 51.8%.
| Houdain | Pas-de-Calais median | France median | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Under 15 | 17% | 18% | 17% |
| 15–24 | 12% | 12% | 11% |
| 25–44 | 22% | 24% | 23% |
| 45–64 | 26% | 26% | 26% |
| 65+ | 22% | 20% | 22% |
| No diploma | 22% | 24% | 19% |
| CAP or BEP | 31% | 27% | 26% |
| Baccalauréat | 20% | 19% | 18% |
| Higher education | 20% | 22% | 30% |
INSEE, census 2023 · Pas-de-Calais median and France median: the median of compared communes
Other places to visit, museums and family days out in and near Houdain. Best known first.
Houdain has one historic monument; beside it, the nearest classé monuments in other towns, within 15.5 mi.
École Jules Elby: Photo: Jérémy Jännick · Public domain
4 notable people were born in Houdain.
Hervé: Unknown author Unknown author, Public domain · Philippe Gengembre: Adèle Varillat, Public domain
The nearest towns of 2,500 or more. The map uses IGN’s commune boundaries. See them on the map →
| Town | People | Miles | Overall | Cost | Safety | Health |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Houdain | 6,945 | — | C− | B+ | C | D− |
| Bruay-la-Buissière | 21,424 | 1.7 | D | B | D | D |
| Haillicourt | 5,064 | 1.7 | D | B | C+ | D− |
| Divion | 6,766 | 2 | D | B | D | D− |
| Barlin | 7,331 | 3.1 | D− | B− | C− | D− |
| Calonne-Ricouart | 5,369 | 3.3 | C | B+ | C+ | D− |
| Marles-les-Mines | 5,411 | 3.7 | C− | B | C+ | D− |
People: INSEE, census 2023. Miles: center to center.
It grades C for safety, #61 of 120 in Pas-de-Calais. In 2025 police and gendarmerie recorded 18 burglaries and 61 acts of criminal damage.
They grade C+, better than 44% of compared French towns and #89 of 123 in Pas-de-Calais. 94% of 354 candidates passed the bac at Lycée polyvalent Carnot in 2025, at the expected rate given its pupils’ backgrounds. Primary schools aren’t graded: France doesn’t publish their results by school.
Homes cost less than in most compared French towns: the median sale price from July 2023 to June 2026 was €1,439/m², against €2,430/m² for the median of compared French towns. Incomes are lower than in most compared French towns too, so Houdain grades B+ for cost of living.
Commune in Pas-de-Calais, Hauts-de-France
Houdain is a commune of 6,945 people in the Communauté d'agglomération de Béthune-Bruay, Artois-Lys Romane. TownRatings compares communes, France’s local unit: each has its own mayor and its own statistics. Its area takes in the town and the countryside around it.
Built from INSEE’s 2026 official geography (COG) and IGN Admin Express boundaries
Sources: INSEE, census 2023 (population, employment, commuting) · INSEE, Filosofi 2023 (income per consumption unit, poverty) · DGFiP, DVF property sales, July 2023 to June 2026 · Housing Ministry, Carte des loyers 2025 · SSMSI, recorded crime by commune, 2023–2025 · Ministry of Education (DEPP), brevet and bac results and value-added indicators, 2025 · INSEE, deaths by commune of residence 2016–2025 and censuses 2012–2023; Eurostat, death rates by age (© European Union); INSEE, BPE 2025 (care homes, emergency and maternity units, GPs, pharmacies); DREES, APL 2024; INSEE, life expectancy by département 2025 (provisional) · INSEE, BPE 2025 and Filosofi 200 m grid (walking distances) · IGN Admin Express (boundaries) · TownRatings grades: our own summary of the data, ranking French towns against each other only, updated October 30, 2026. Under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab).
Contains public sector information under the Licence Ouverte / Open Licence 2.0 (Etalab): INSEE, DGFiP, the Interior Ministry’s statistics service (SSMSI), the Ministry of Education (DEPP), the Health Ministry’s statistics service (DREES) and the Housing Ministry (Carte des loyers). Commune boundaries: IGN Admin Express.